Under the general supervision of the FAO Representative in Uganda, and the direct supervision of the Team Leader for Forestry at FAO Uganda, and day to day immediate supervision by Technical Advisor on wood harvesting and processing and, and technical backstopping of the Lead Technical Officer, the programme specialist on planning and wood harvesting will work with other programme specialists, and analysts in the implementation of the project.

Technical Focus

The incumbent will support wood harvesting and processing technical advisor on activities related to (i) the sustainable supply of legal wood raw material from planted forests and (ii) enhancing processing capacity and market demand for wood products at national and sub-national levels.

Tasks and responsibilities

Wood resource planning and harvesting 

•    Plan and conduct forest inventories for selected forest plantations and develop yield regulation plans.
•    Train and build capacity of forest owners to develop Operational Harvesting Plans (OHPs) to guide harvesting operations.
•    Develop and promote relevant guidelines such as harvesting guidelines, health and safety guidelines to promote good forest management practices.
•    Plan and coordinate relevant training courses to build capacity of target beneficiaries in sustainable wood harvesting and transport.
•    Conduct regular monitoring visits to provide onsite technical assistance to harvesting operations and ensure adherence to OHPs, safety and quality standards.
•    Build technical capacity of smallholder farmers to sustainably manage their forest resources.
•    Coordinate a certification program for forest harvesting contractors.

Primary wood processing (sawmilling and related value addition) & Market development.  

•    Facilitate formation and strengthening of aggregated wood processor groups.
•    Support aggregated groups to establish a jointly managed wood processing facility.
•    Facilitate the development of business plans for aggregated producer groups by ensuring their participation in the investment readiness programme.
•    Provide technical assistance in identification of appropriate wood processing equipment.
•    Support training and build capacity of actors in primary wood processing for efficient wood milling, seasoning and further value addition.
•    Support the establishment of service centers for repairs and maintenance of primary processing machinery.
•    Support timber grading operations to ensure adherence to the national timber grading standards.
•    Facilitate the process of developing the East Africa standards for timber to harness opportunities for regional trade.
•    Support periodic national and regional timber market surveys

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

•    An advanced degree in Forestry, Natural Resource Management, Wood Technology and Science, or any related qualifications.
•    At least 7 years of proven experience in commercial forestry, sustainable forest management, and natural resources management in Uganda.
•    .Working knowledge of English.
•    Must be Ugandan National.

FAO Core Competencies

•    Results Focus
•    Teamwork
•    Communication
•    Building Effective Relationships
•    Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

•    Experience in commercial forestry and natural resources management.
•    Experience and knowledge of wood sector value chains. Additional knowledge in understanding the key players, financing landscape and investment related to forestry/wood industry is an asset for the position.
•    Proven experience in carrying out activities related to forest inventory, planning for commercial purposes
•    Relevant experience in developing and promoting forestry standards in wood harvesting and related health and safety
•    Proven experience in supporting wood processing
•    Demonstrated experience in understanding of commercial plantation forestry operations, wood processing or marketing
•    Experience in providing strategic guidance, technical oversight, build strong teams.
•    Proven experience in developing forest and wood processing guidelines, procedures and standards.
•    Demonstrated expertise in forest technical training in harvesting and transport, primary wood processing, secondary wood processing.
•    In-depth understanding of Forest and wood products certification Audits
•    Experience in engaging and networking with forestry consultants, Government, Government agencies, development partners, donors, civil society, private sector, and national, regional and international stakeholder at technical and implementation level.
•    Good level of proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)